Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.
Google has pushed out another algorithm update yesterday, the July 2022 Product Reviews Update and we have an early post on what we are seeing so far. Google Maps is testing infinite scroll. BingBot’s new user agent is now responsible for crawling 5% of the URLs. Google Merchant Center no longer disapproved login required and restricted purchases free listings. We have a large collection of Microsoft Bing user interface changes and tests.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
July 2022 Google Product Reviews Update Rolling Out – Everything We See So Far
The fourth version of the Google Product Reviews Update is now rolling out – this update is called – you guessed it – the July 2022 Google Product Reviews Update. This update, like previous updates, will take about two to three weeks to fully roll out.
Google Merchant Center Now Allows Login Required & Restricted Purchase Free Listings
Google has updated its Google Merchant Center policy to no longer disapprove the login required and restricted purchase free listings. Google said instead, Google will mark them as active but may notice the products “have limited visibility on Google.”
Microsoft: 5% Of BingBot Crawls Are New BingBot
Fabrice Canel from Microsoft said on Twitter last night that 5% of all URLs downloaded are over the new BingBot user agent. To take you back, in April, Bing announced a new user agent for its crawler, BingBot.
Google Maps Tests Infinite Scroll For Search Results
We have seen Google Search test infinite scroll search results on and off for years, even launching continuous scroll on mobile officially. But now we are seeing Google Maps test infinite scroll in its search results interface.
Microsoft Bing Search Tests & New Features
There is just so much going on with Microsoft Bing Search between new features and tests, I figured I’d put together a quick list of them in one place. I am not 100% sure if these are all new because I am not as on top of Bing as I am with Google but here it goes.
The Local Thai Restaurant (Another)
Here is another local business, this one is a restaurant, that is named The Local Thai Restaurant. Do these folks really not think about how Google Search and Maps return search results?
Other Great Search Threads:
What do you mean with rel=alternate? There are a bunch of things that go that direction, but it sounds like different language/country versions connected with hreflang? If they’, John Mueller on Twitter
Meta Reports Q2 2022 Results, WebmasterWorld
Yeah, Twitter for me too. That said, it would be tempting to go on a drunk-posting splurge on Twitter one day., John Mueller on Twitter
Checking https://t.co/ZFghSF4iSW if you click the “price promise” link in the side, it opens up a price comparison sidebar with that information., John Mueller on Twitter
Search Engine Land Stories:
8 steps to a successful entity-first strategy for SEO and content
GA4 now shows Performance Max and Smart Shopping data
Google Merchant Center no longer disapproves login required and restricted purchase free product listings
Google cookies will remain active on Chrome until 2024
Google releases July 2022 product reviews update
GA4 brings new and familiar concepts to the future of analytics
Your guide to the first 90 days as an enterprise SEO director
Other Great Search Stories:
Analytics
8 Google Data Studio Dashboard Examples for Ecommerce Businesses Recommended By Experts, Databox Blog
CRO in 2022: A Beginner’s Guide to Conversion Rate Optimization, PPC Hero
Top 22 Google Tag Manager (GTM) Tools Used by Experts, Measure Minds Group
Industry & Business
Bringing Google to Chicago’s Thompson Center, Google Blog
Microsoft Asks Google, Oracle to Help Crimp Amazon’s U.S. Government Cloud Leadership, Wall Street Journal
Our new office is a love letter to Atlanta, Google Blog
Twitter Rebounds From Disastrous Year, While Google Loses Grip on Search Engines, ACSI Data Show, The American Customer Satisfaction Index
Google, Microsoft Find Strength in the Cloud Computing Business, The Motley Fool
Links & Content Marketing
4 Metrics Not To Be Missed in Your Next Content Audit, Content Marketing Institute
An Insider’s 8-Step Guide to Real Estate Content Marketing, Semrush
20 Actionable Blogging Tips for Beginners, Ahrefs
Local & Maps
Google Cuts Off Reviews for Reproductive Care Clinics, Near Media
Google Maps in India finally gets Street View, coming to these cities first, India Today
How to Use Google Maps With Notion, Make Use Of
Mobile & Voice
Spotify’s Car Thing player is no longer a thing, Engadget
Google working on Assistant ‘Home Ad Triggered’ bug since ’18, still no fix, PiunikaWeb
How to change the Google Assistant voice on Android, Tom’s Guide
SEO
15 common SEO questions and answers, Koozai
7 Local SEO Tips: Focus On Your Neighborhood, Level343
8 Simple Steps to Complete a Technical SEO Audit, SitePoint
PPC
Top PPC Keywords: I’d Put Money On That, Similarweb
Expanding testing for the Privacy Sandbox for the Web, Google Blog
Other Search
Google’s efforts to identify and counter spyware, Google Blog
Feedback:
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